South Korea had previously given second booster shots to people who are 60 or older and those with compromised immune systems. Officials are now expanding the eligibility of those shots to people who are 50 or older and all adults with pre-existing medical conditions. Weeklong quarantines will be maintained for people who test positive.
The state task force is set to meet on Monday, and its chief Dr Sanjay Oak said a subsidy in booster price can widen coverage in the 18-59 age group.
COVID-19 vaccine makers are shifting gears and planning for a smaller, more competitive booster shot market after delivering as many doses as fast as they could over the last 18 months.
The pace of vaccination against Covid has not picked up except in the case of the elderly getting booster doses, where 92% of the beneficiaries have been covered. Till date, 12.9% healthcare workers have been given booster shots, while 23% FLWs have got the shots.
Australia's national cabinet late on Thursday endorsed the revised guidance from the country's vaccination advisory group to classify "up-to-date" inoculations as including boosters.
Speaking before lawmakers, Fumio Kishida said authorities would aim to deliver around 1 million boosters a day by the end of February. The premier said the added doses are “key” to fighting the ongoing omicron surge of infections.
Delhi became the only Indian city to achieve the milestone of administering more than 3 crore cumulative vaccine doses against Covid-19 on Monday. The national capital also became the 20th among all states and union territories to have crossed the 3-crore mark.
The Omicron situation is fast improving, the travel industry feels India allow a graded resumption of scheduled international flights that was supposed to happen from December 15, 2021, but was delayed by the third wave.
The subvariant, detected in at least 57 countries, appears to spread even more easily than the original. But so far it doesn’t seem to cause more severe disease and booster shots remain an effective shield.
Vaccination among adolescents continues to progress well with over 50% of those between 15-17 years covered with the first dose in just about 16 days.
The booster shots will be restricted to frontline workers for one week from Monday, the Health Ministry said, after which they'll be offered to people 60 and older.
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